Click above for high-res gallery of the Lotus Evora

Way back in Febuary of 2006, Lotus seemingly looked past its sports car roots by introducing the "Aluminium Performance Crossover ", or APX concept, which was powered by a supercharged 3.0L DOHC V6. Although the crossover had room for seven people, it weighed just 3,454 pounds -- very light for a vehicle of its size and capabilities. At least Lotus hadn't lost its "add lightness" mantra. And, it appears that it never actually lost sight of its sports car history either, as the Versatile Vehicle Architecture originally introduced over two years ago is now the basis for its brand new Evora.

The Evora appears about as far from the APX concept as one could get, proving that its aluminum-heavy platform is just as versatile as Lotus claims. While we are happy to see Lotus continue its tradition of lightweight performance cars, we can all still hold out hope that an electric vehicle based off the APX concept could see the light of day at some point, as Lotus plans to sell just 2,000 Evoras per year, a small portion of the total VVA-based vehicles the small British manufacturer says it can produce. In the accompanying press release, Lotus says that its still spearheading research into hybrids and full electric vehicles.

[Source: Lotus via Autoblog]

Over at the Tesla Motors blog, future Roadster owner Ken Jacobs has written a guest post about his recent visit to England. While he and his wife were in the UK, they hopped over to Hethel, the home of Lotus and primary assembly site of the Roadster. They were given a tour of the factory and the assembly line where Lotus employees take the thousands of bits and pieces that comprise a Roadster and bolt them together. The regular Elise assembly line has been modified to simultaneously accommodate both the Roadster and the Elise. At the moment, Roadsters are still only being started at the rate of around 4 cars per week, although that should increase rapidly later in August as Tesla prepares to switch over to the updated drivetrain. Lotus assembles "gliders" whose motor and battery get installed once the rolling chassis arrives in California. Tesla is ships the cars by boat from England, a trip that takes several weeks.

[Source: Tesla]

Updated with new gallery

While it could be argued that Lotus already builds the greenest sportscars on the planet, the British automaker seems keenly aware that the world's gas-burning ways are quickly being swept under the carpet. What started with the dual-fuel capable Lotus Exige 265E - which got a bit more power out of ethanol - moved on to the tri-fuel capable Exige 270E. The 270E rumbled with a bit more power from either ethanol or methanol. Now, the classically-British automaker is dabbling in solar power, among other green trickery on its upcoming Eco Elise. Specifically, a few roof-mounted solar cells will help efficiency by keeping the electrics charged up while some innovative and lightweight components have been added to the already lightweight chassis structure.

Interesting tidbits include a new hand-painted water-based finish which "saves energy and reduces emissions of solvents from the paint shop." The hardtop and rear spoiler have been made from a hemp composite, as have various interior pieces like the seats and some fabrics. The fabric used on the seats themselves is a certified eco-friendly wool and the carpets are sewn from sisal. Overall weight has been reduced by over seventy pounds. If you happen to be in London later this month, the car will be debuted at the Motor Show. There are plenty more eco-facts floating in the press release, which we've pasted after the break. Enjoy!


[Source: Lotus]

A consortium of Dutch companies under the banner of Electric Cars Europe have decided a little collaboration is in order to help speed up the implementation of electric cars in the Netherlands. With a vision of seeing 26 per cent of Dutch cars powered by electrons by 2025, the consortium's plan has several parts, the first of which involves some conversion of several Lotus Elise vehicles to an electric drivetrain by partner company, Innosys Engineering. Isn't it a little strange how Lotus has become the "go to" company when you want to build, or even just convert, an electric sports car these days? But I digress.

The next order of business is to take €100 million already invested and metamorphose a couple hundred Volkswagen Golfs from liquid fuel to solid state. All of these vehicles, as well as some future models, are to be monitored by energy company, Essent, as part of large-scale testing of their "Mobile Smart Grid." This is a "smart" distribution system that will make the move to electric personal transportation more feasible by tracking how much power you need and when you need it. It can also bill you for what you use regardless of where you plug in.

To read about a somewhat surprising twist to their next phase as well as test your working knowledge of Dutch and watch some electric Lotus Elise action, hit the jump. As an extra bonus we've also tagged on an extra video from Innosys Engineering that shows off what they've accomplished to the syncopated rhythms of a funky soundtrack.

* Added another video showing more of the orange Elise on the track

Click above for hi-res gallery of the Lotus Exige 270E Tri-Fuel

British sportscar-maker and engineering firm Lotus may be known for its lightweight vehicles, but in the industry it still packs a punch as a heavyweight. It's that weight which Lotus is throwing behind methanol as the most viable alternative fuel.

Towards that end, at this year's Geneva motor show Lotus unveiled the flex-fuel 270E prototype based on the lightweight Exige sportscar. The vehicle is designed to run on gasoline, ethanol or methanol, but it's the latter which the company feels is the most viable for the near future. Like bio-ethanol, methanol can be made from natural materials, or can be made from hydrogen combined with CO₂ pulled out of the thin air, which allows for zero-emissions operation. The most convenient aspect, however, is that most car engines on the road today could be converted to run on methanol.

[Source: Automotive News Europe - subs. req'd]

Lotus Engineering is continuing to move aggressively into the realm of greener transportation. This week two different consortia of which Lotus is a part were awarded development contracts by the UK Government Technology Strategy Board. The first of the two projects is the Zero Emission London Taxi that we reported on last month. The government money will be used to help with the commercialization of fleets of fuel cell powered taxis in London by 2012.

The other project, dubbed Limo-Green, involves developing a hybrid drive Jaguar sedan. The description of this car is fairly vague, mentioning an advanced drive motor, small battery pack and an auxiliary power unit for sustained cruising. It sounds like it might be an extended range electric vehicle but with a relatively small battery for only minimal EV-only range. Lotus is developing the APU as a small engine with high thermal efficiency and power output. This could be an interesting project to watch. The Lotus press release is after the jump.

Usually, when Lotus appears on the pages of AutoblogGreen, the story has to do with the engineering work that the storied British company does, either for itself or for other automakers -- including one of our personal faves, Tesla Motors. In fact, Lotus' battle cry since its inception has been to "add lightness" to all of its vehicles, which not only improves performance but also adds a distinct shade of green in the process. Now we learn that Lotus has more subtle greenery up its sleeves. The U.K. company will be collecting all of the scrap leather which goes unused after the creation of its various sportscars. The scraps will be sent away to another U.K. factory which produces leather work gloves. Sure, this little nugget of knowledge isn't nearly as cool as a new electric sportscar or anything, but, as we're sure you'd agree, every little bit counts.

[Source: Autocar (print edition) via Winding Road]

The philosophy of Lotus founder Colin Chapman was always to make his cars as light as possible. He is reported to have said at various times "to add speed, add lightness" and "simplicate, than add lightness." Over the years, Lotus cars have often been among the lightest of their kind and innovations in weight reduction continue to this day. The work that Lotus has done in developing low mass vehicle structures for cars like the Lotus Elise and the Tesla Roadster is set to expand with the acquisition of Holden Lightweight Structures Limited. Worcester, UK-based Holden has been assembling the aluminum chassis for the Elise and other Lotus models and will now be renamed Lotus Lightweight Structures as it becomes part of Group Louts plc. As mass reduction becomes increasingly important to reducing fuel consumption and emissions in the coming years, Lotus is hoping the acquisition helps them better serve its engineering client base. The Hethel-based company can provide its design expertise as well as manufacturing capabiity. The Lotus press release is after the jump.

Ecotricity founder Dale Vince is a guy with a dilemma we here at AutoblogGreen can empathize with. He's very environmentally aware yet he really likes fast cars. His solution? Build an electric sports car. Luckily, he's got wads of cash (and previous connections with Lotus) to make this sort of dream come true and, according to a post on his zerocarbonista blog, construction is already under way.

An Exige, judging by the rendition on his blog (picture above), is probably the donor chassis for this project and is currently lying in pieces in Norfolk, presumably at the Lotus shop there. No word on whether the new hybrid and electric car group within Lotus Engineering is involved with the undertaking but it seems rather likely. Of course we are familiar with another existing electric sports car with some Lotus DNA that Vince could have put his name on a list for but the required waiting time is probably too long for a guy so committed to green he only drove about 3,000 miles last year. Of course, if those miles were traveled in the Mercedes which appears with him in his explanatory video (after the jump) than that would be like 100,000 Prius miles.

Click the Exige for a high-res gallery

The World's Sexiest Greenest Car Show is back; bigger, better and sexier than ever... so says the home page of The Co-Operated Insurance Sexy Green Car Show. Like last year, the Sexy Green Car Show promises to show off some of the best green car concepts to a captive British audience. Chief among these vehicles will be the Lotus Exige 270E Tri-Fuel. Initially shown at the 2008 Geneva Motor Show, the Exige 270E is capable of running on gasoline, ethanol or methanol. A sophisticated computer system can detect what type of fuel the vehicle has been fed and can adjust necessary engine parameters to use that fuel. In the process, Lotus was able to tune the engine to extract a bit more power, 270 horses to be exact.

In addition to the car itself, Lotus is reportedly working on a new method of creating methanol which involves the extraction of waste carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. A chemical reaction with hydrogen produces both methanol and water. If a clean source for the production of methanol were indeed possible, flex-fuel vehicles could add it to their stable of power sources.


[Source: Just-Auto]

Not long ago we posted on Lotus' plans to develop business in Saudi Arabia. Lotus Engineering and Mubadala Development Company have now announced a similar agreement in Abu Dhabi, the capitol of the United Arab Emirates.

As in the case of Saudi Arabia, Abu Dhabi is wondering what to do when they run out of oil to sell. As the announcement from the Lotus and Mubadala states, a company that reduces well-to-wheel CO₂ emissions can be a good idea for Abu Dhabi's plans. The company will work with advanced lightweight materials and hybrid technologies

The press release states that this will support "Abu Dhabi's low carbon footprint philosophy" and will "address the environmental imperatives facing the automotive industry globally." You can read it after the jump.

[Source: Lotus]

Recently, I wrote a post that talked about Volvo's statement that they were working exclusively with PML (a company that makes in-wheel electric motors). I found this concerning because I thought PML was working with Zap on the Zap-X, a Lotus-designed, affordable, normal-looking electric car. I contacted Zap Communication's Alex Campbell, who checked with Zap's CEO Steve Schneider about Volvo's statements. Zap says they are in a relationship with PML but only on three-wheeled vehicles. As for four-wheeled cars, Zap tried but it looks like PML went with Volvo. Zap has moved on to a Chinese company that they say is not only cheaper than PML but can provide in-wheel electric motors sooner. So there is no confusion, here is exactly what Zap says:

We signed an exclusive agreement with PML on 3-wheelers and at the time were negotiating with them on other vehicles. We have since partnered up with a company in China with rights to their wheel hub motors. The significance is that the wheel hub motor that we have acquired is currently working in application and we believe will be commercially available within a shorter period of time than PML's. It is my understanding that the PML motor has still yet to work in any automotive application. And they are expensive so it would need to be manufactured in China to stay competitive.

[Source: Alex Campbell from Zap]

As you can see in the video above, aluminum is the latest thing in sport car body frames. Ferrari is working with Alcoa on the aluminum "space frame" which weighs just 440 pounds, one third the weight of a steel frame. The way the frame is put together is also very important. Tesla worked with Lotus on a "bonded" aluminum frame that can easily be picked up with one hand. Don't miss the end of the video because I included an odd clip of Tesla showing their battery. Seems Tesla won't let you see inside of their battery because it's "proprietary technology."

Related:

• Land Rover going aluminum for next generation Range Rover
• Using aluminum to create lighter, more fuel-efficient automobiles
• Increase in aluminum use saves 1 billion liters of fuel per year in Europe

[Source: YouTube]

The product of the Zap-Lotus agreement, the Zap-X, a normal looking, electric, four door sedan, just might be "months" away from mass production. China.org.cn is reporting China's Youngman Automotive Group, the guys making the car for Zap, said they could deliver a test car to Zap by the end of this year and after testing by Zap, the sedan could go into mass production as little as two months later. Here is the quote:

"The sample vehicles will be finished at the end of this year or next January. Two or three months after testing, the electric-powered sedan under the Lotus brand will be the first to go into mass production."

Zap has not announced a release date (surprise!) but if things go as Youngman hopes, the Zap-APX could have a release date of Summer 2008; the earliest release date that we know of for any of the new, normal electric cars like the Miles Javlon. While a summer release date would give Zap the honor of being first to market with a normal electric car, the price and range are the more complicated issues. They have not given a price and the range is said to be 350 miles.

Whatever the release, price and range, the Zap-X looks like it will be an amazing car, should it ever be more than vaporware: in-wheel electric motors by PML FlightLink, a top speed of 155 mph, and 0 to 60 MPH in 4.8 seconds. While, I don't think anyone expects all of that to remain true, for an affordable car anyway, I am glad to hear that things are at least currently on track on Youngman's end for the Zap-APX. AutoblogGreen remains skeptical, as you know.



[Source: China.org.cn and tipster Domenick]

We've run across a few reports now that Mercedes may have sought out help from a seemingly unlikely source for technical expertise in the design of their new hybrid system, slated first for their flagship S Class sedan. The source is Lotus, who does not currently offer any hybrid vehicles. Lotus does, however, often collaborate with other car companies, Like Tesla Motors who is relying heavily on Lotus engineering excellence in designing their Roadster. Lotus has also developed other fuel-saving technologies. ZAP has also reportedly been in touch with Lotus, although we are not really expecting a great deal of new information on that front any time soon.

The hybrid system that Mercedes is working on seems to place the electric motor between the engine and the transmission. The engine choices should be a 268-hp 3.5L V6 using gasoline or a 2.2L 168 hp diesel equipped with the Mercedes Bluetec system to reduce diesel exhaust emissions.

[Source: AutoCar via Autoblog]